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There are slight differences from the F800S and ST to the GS models. I've done valve checks on both my wifes F800ST and my F800GS. Pauls experience was with Voni's F800S which like my wife's ST, requires unbolting the radiator to allow the valve cover to be removed. It's not necessary to drain the rad and remove it totally, you just need to unfasten it and let it hang out of the way on the hoses. The thing that really blocks the cover is actually the fan and shroud, but those are held in together with the rad. On the GS models, that is not required as the cylinders have less forward lean angle and the valve cover will clear the rad and fan. The frame rails are a bit tighter to get the cover up through and you will need to cut the zip ties on some of the wiring harnesses and flex them out of the way a bit. It's more of an issue when trying to get the cover back in without the gasket and sealant getting displaced. You should use a new gasket, especially if it has not been change previously. There is an updated gasket kit that comes with new bolts and washers to address the leakage issues that were common from the valve cover. Both of ours were leaking and got the new gaskets.

I did my GS first and it took me about three to four hours to complete with no need to actually change any of the shims since all the valve clearances were within specs. My wifes ST took about the same amount of time even with the extra work of removing the rad since I was all ready familiar with much of the process. It too did not require any shims to be changed. Both of these checks were the 20,000 Km (12,000 mile) checks. I did not change the plugs on either at this interval, but doing so would have been a five minute task at that point. I do recommend that you invest in the coil puller tool to make the job of removing them without damage easier. They are available from a few sources; mine is from Wunderlich. The majority of the work is removing all the body panels and such, not the actuall work on the engine. The battery and airbox come off quite easily, and then the valve cover is right there.

Deffinitly a straight forward task for someone who is comfortable as a DIYer. Not as easy as a boxer, but really not as bad as things might seem at first glance.

Ed Miller, Calgary, AB
2008 K1200GT, 2009 F800GS
I can't wait to retire and have a fixed income. The one I have now is always broke.

I did it on my 800ST. New gasket, on which BMW recommends sealer. If you don't want it to leak, use the sealer.
The new gasket will leak without sealer.
If you are a purist and don't want to use sealer, then just accept it when it leaks.
It's a corny gasket, with big half moons in it and it's real easy to assure it won't leak.
Sealer.
Have fun.
dc

Thanks Ed, you've eased my mind about my ability to do these tasks on Annie's GS. After reading your and others experiences with valve checks I decided to put them on a 24,000 mile interval. Have not heard of one bike needing adjustment at 12k.

Hylomar?

I have Rev. #4 of the BMW manual and it recommends using "Bond 1209" sealant, but only on the left side of the gasket and about half-way round the front and back,
leaving the other side "dry". I was told this was to allow the gasket to "blow out" if needed due to a build up of pressure in the top of the engine... I'm not sure about that part, but the manual does say to only use the sealant on the left half of the gasket.

A friend suggested I use Hylomar as the sealant because it does not harden and this would allow the rather expensive gasket set to be reused.

PS: one other thing I have heard is that these engines tend to tighten up with mileage (i.e. clearances drift to the tight side).
If true you might want to get a "baseline" reading at 12K to see if any are to the tight side... if so and the clearances continued to get tighter you could end up with burned valves.

An append longer than 10 words in which I didn't screw something up!
I think that's a first for me ...

I am quite glad to hear the Hylomar works, that should save me the cost of some expensive gaskets as we go on down the road, not to mention that it will take the "time pressure" out of the re-assembly process since the Hylomar doesn't really "set up".

2013 bump

Doing this on a 2007 800S this week...almost as much "fun" as on the Wedge K12S's I have done a few times. Just not as many valves to check

The set up looks very similar to the 4 cylinder including the gasket issue and use of sealant in certain places.

This bike has no records as it is in the 2nd owners hands and at 24K the plugs looked like they were original...and worn out electrodes with a large gap.

However, it appears someone did do a valve check as I had a LOT of clear RTV on both surfaces of cover and on engine block and IN the galley. A little overkill on someones part and did not work as this bike looked like the Valdez had crashed into the top end. Another causal factor is prob the extra quart of oil the bike had in it

headed to get gasket on hold for me today...what is the consensus on what sealant to use this year? I used the blue RTV on the Wedge K's...I think...I'll look at records today.
Have to get a longer set of feelers as well...what worked on the K is too short on these tight quarters.

At 60K now on the twin. Time for plugs and valves checked. Anyone done this themself yet?

I have heard that there is a new spec, for the valve clearance. Can someone post and I will try to save it this time. My 09 with 75,000 will soon need to rechecked. At 60,000 it was still ok with the old spec.
Roy